Greetings all from the otherside of the globe! I'm back with my family stateside, and with nothing but time. Time to sleep, to eat, to chat leisurely. But most importantly, time to blog! Right?? Riiight.

And with is being the last week before Christmas, it is only appropriate that I post some winter illuminations! They aren't necessary Christmas-y in theme, but they are a big deal during the holiday season in Japan. In the kansai area alone, there are illuminations in Kobe (the 神戸ルミナリエ), Osaka (天王寺イルミナージュ and 大阪光のルネサンス ), and Kyoto (京都花灯路) as well as tiny spots in many shopping malls and centers that dot the area. But this particular illumination spot in Nagashima (technically the Chuubu area, but very easy to get to from Osaka) is a big hit all throughout Japan.

なばなの里ウインターイルミネーション冬華の競演
Nabana no Sato Winter Illumination Fuyuka no Kyouen
Nabana no sato is a popular sightseeing spot for Japanese and non-Japanese alike when it comes to enjoying gardens and hot springs. Most of the hotels in the area are also right next to the Anpaman Museum, making it extremely popular for big families with small children, the theme park Nagashima Spa Land also makes it an awesome spot for young people, with an outlet mall for the wives of well-to-do salaryman. Really, it's probably got everything you need for a good overnight trip. :)

Access Info:
〒511-1144
三重県桑名市長島町駒江漆畑270
(Mie-ken Kuwana-shi Nagashima-cho Komareurushibata 270)
なばなの里
(Nabana no Sato)
TEL：0594-41-0787
 Hours of Operation: 9:00 - 21:00, 9:00 - 22:00 on Sat, Sun. and Holidays
Winter Illumination Price: 2000yen for ages 12 and above. Ages 12 and below are free.

English Mie Tourism Info Site       Official Japanese Site

 If you dig on winter illuminations, then this place comes highly recommended. 

It's definitely got more breathing room than the illuminations that take place in big cities (here's lookin' at you Kobe), so you can take your time with photo ops and you don't feel rushed. Though, if you rode in on the tour bus, you're on an hour time limit. However, the hour is plenty for getting a look around.

Plus, the mascot for the gardens is Peter Rabbit! I had a bunch of Peter Rabbit stuff as a baby, so I'm forever attached to this mischievous bunny.


And not only are there winter illuminations, but they also light up the autumn leaves, all for your viewing pleasure..! :)

Kyoto has a similar illumination for it's autumn lives, so I'm now eager to check that out next year as well. Autumn leaves are definitely my favorite kind of leaves.






Everything else about the event is really well done. There are signs to clearly identify the various sections of the garden and there are even some restaurants or food stalls for snacks or dinner. I didn't get to taste anything, but food stalls in Japan rarely disappoint. :>
And that's about it for the words. Now you can just enjoy the photos! This was taken in main area. I do believe that is a wedding chapel in the background.
This is a crazy UFO you can ride in to get a view of the park from above. It's actually called Island Fuji and it's 500 yen for adults and 300 for kids. You can check out that webpage here.

One of my favorite spots, the Tunnel of light..! All the tiny lights are in the shapes of flowers. :)

Here's the sakura version! Both were fantastic, though the white one is better for photo ops! ;)

This year's main event was this "screen," which was actually just thousands of LED lights, animated with music. It's like a little play about nature showing things like the aurora, Mt. Fuji, a rainbow and the iconic Japanese sunrise. It's almost makes you feel a little mushy inside. :3

Overall, this was one of my favorite fall/winter experiences in Japan. If friends or Shota (who wasn't able to go this time) said they wanted to go next year, I'd probably go again. :) There's also a hot spring I'd like to visit next time too! If I had a star rating for these, I'd give it something like a 4.5-5 (I'm super indecisive, hence why I don't have any kind of rating system :P ).

The next post will probably be about the begonia garden, which is inside Nabana no sato, but you do have to pay extra. If you're a big flower lover though, it's absolutely worth it..! :)

Stay warm and happy!♪♥
★Peaces★

I don't do sports often, but when I do, boxing isn't a bad choice..! :)

We (my boss, the manager and I) got the tickets from a friend of the Kameda group, and he got us some great seats, so I was more than happy to go. It's a great alternative to any other activity, especially outdoor ones because it is freezing nowadays. :<


There were quite a few preliminary fights between Japanese boxers, but the main event(s) were the Kameda Brothers (there are 3) with Kameda Koki as the main main event.

This photo is of the youngest, Kameda Tomoki. I loved his sparkly pink shorts..! Oh, and he fought well. :3 I think he won by TKO.

And you can see from the photo, our seats were so close..! I still think my bar's manager was disappointed that were weren't ringside so she could touch the boxers. Lol

Unfortunately, I didn't take any photos of the middle child, Kameda Daiki, which is really quite sad seeing as  I'm a middle child too..! :< He also had a really cool costume when entering the ring. Some character from Japanese history that I can't remember right now, but I'm sure if you wiki Daiki, it'll come up :)

This photo was taken from Tomoki's entrance, during which they played Gangnam Style. That song is so popular nowadays, you'll hear it in clubs as well, but sadly, Japan is quite late to that party. Lol

I know pretty much nothing about who holds what titles in boxing, but I do believe Kameda Koki is the current champion for his weight class. His oppponent, Mexican boxer Hugo Ruiz, is also a current champ or previous champ, I'm not sure, but he was quite strong as well.






 As far as sporting events go, I would say this was one of my faves. We were there from 17:00 until about 21:30, but it really didn't feel like such a long time. Probably because a round is only a couple minutes, so it makes it feel like everything is moving quickly. :P






In the end, all three brothers won their matches, which seems like a really adorable way to end the fight night. I probably shouldn't call a family of boxers adorable tho :v

After the fight, I had to go work at the bar, which, in retrospect, I probably shouldn't have done, but we were able to meet up with the Kameda family patriarch and sponsors later on as well, so that was pretty neat. They are all rambunctious karaoke-ers and drinkers. That is all. Lol


I feel like this is such a short post, though it's probably closer to normal compared to my other, more rambly posts. I'm still going through my photos from Nabana in Nagashima, which had a double whammy of winter illuminations and autumn leaf-age, but since I have Friday and Saturday off, I'd like to get that post up this weekend. :) Then, by this time next week, I'll be visiting my family in Wash. D.C.!! AH, I'm so excited. All English, 24-7, plus a little D.C. dialect. I'm going to call everyone bama's and rachet which screaming like a lunch box.

Ahehe, I hope everyone's winter WAIWAI is going well! Be safe!♥

★Peaces★

Bonus Video! Of Kameda Tomoki's entrance to Gangnam style. Sorry for the shakiness. I was dancing around and being a doofus. :E